1 comments about Garden Houses and Privies: Authentic Details for Design and Restoration.

1. Excellent collection of privies constructed from 1700 to 1875. The author has done his research and while the detailed drawings are the main focus, the text is interesting. I wish there were more of it as the subject is a bit off the beaten path. The book is a great resource for homeowners, architects or builders really interested in incorporating accurate historical elements in residential construction.

No comments about Almanac of Architecture & Design 2008 (Almanac of Architecture and Design).

1 comments about Architecture in Detail: Materials (Architecture in Detail).

1. I bought this book simly looking for an addition to my architectural library, but I fell in love with it. I never imagined the flexability of materials before I picked up this book. I strongly recommend it.

4 comments about For the Record: The Life and Work of Alex Steinweiss.

1. This book is very good for people who want to know more about cover albuns design. Alex Steinweiss are genious! =)



2. alex steinweiss is a fantastic human being. generous, funny and full of great stories from his time at columbia records in the early 40's. He is tremendously talented and not just created the concept of album covers, designing more than 800 of them (start looking at your old collection in the attic :-)) but has been for the last 20 years a major accomplished painter. He has gotten awards after awards and stays humble and wise. He lives in Sarasota, Florida.



3. It was a 23-year-old graphic designer who invented the illustrated album cover for phonograph records in 1939: before that they came in plain wrappers. For The Record documents the life and work of Alex Steinweiss, gathering over a hundred of his original graphics and providing a lavish color display of his works along with a history of his involvements in the music industry.



4. This book does credit to a great man. Steinweiss was a true artist and a pioneer. The man created the concept of album cover as art. McKnight-Trontz does a masterful job of celebrating the artist through dazzling illustrations and informative, entertaining narrative. The casual reader will enjoy this book, as will the academic: it's all there between the brilliant covers (Steinweiss design - of course); it is the individual reader's choice as to how deep he or she wants to delve into this fascinating subject of a true twentieth-century art form.

1 comments about Senior Residences: Designing Retirement Communities for the Future (Wiley Series in Healthcare and Senior Living Design).

1. The book doesn't deliver on presenting a computer application system for evaluating performance. It takes the CCRC's accredition questions and just expands on them. From the information that was presented I not sure if the authors know what an application system is. In any event the book lacks any hard technical information, or performance standards, that can be used for evaluating and designing a project. It's presentation is more like a general business plan from a recent MBA graduate.

1 comments about Introduction to Autodesk Land Desktop 2007.

1. This is written for a class in a junior college. Had I known that I would not have ordered it.

1 comments about Random Seas and Design of Maritime Structures (Advanced Series on Ocean Engineering, Volume 15).

1. Safety and reliability engineers responsible for the design of maritime structures can find in Goda's book all necessary background information for the probabilistic description of loads on those structures. No other book currently exists which gives such a complete overview of all methods to describe random sea waves, with particular attention to the extreme waves. This second edition (2000) contains a number of extensions w.r.t. the first edition (1985) and some sections have been rewritten. The reviewer especially enjoyed studying Goda's outline on correlation models between successive wave heights, marginal probability density functions of wave periods, and joint distributions of wave heights and periods of waves with narrow-band spectra.

2 comments about Composite Drawing: Techniques for Architectural Design Presentation.

1. This is an amazing book which contains awesome presentations by a variety of architects. If you are a beginning architect, I highly recommend that you purchase this book. It will give you a clear understanding of what successful presentations look like.



2. I was impressed with this author's approach. I know the subject area was lacking adequate coverage especially for students of architecture and/or professionals. The author demonstrates in myriad ways how various architectural illustrations such as axonometrics, perspectives, elevations, sections, plans and details along with text, titles and photographic images can be effectively designed in sheet composition for creative 2-D presentations of remarkable inventiveness. This book offers a superb reference in an area otherwise under-represented in design education. Highly recommended!

5 comments about Learning SolidWorks (2nd Edition).

1. I don't know what John Thomas is on, but Michael Minbiole lives up to his legend status.
   
   This is hands down the definitive SolidWorks guide of this or any generation. Minbiole's delightful prose flows gracefully yet at the right moment it bites with a rapier wit. Never before has Solid Modeling been described so naturally; it's as if Minbiole eats and sleeps SolidWorks. He totally captured what its like to solid model: the excitement, the confusion, the horniness. He's simply brilliant. I'm not the first to mention his name among better known American authors like Hemmingway and Fitzgerald.
   
   I credit Minbiole for saving my career, and consequently my marriage. Plus he's photogenic enough to make teenage girls swoon. If you're considering a guide to SolidWorks, look no further.



2. I actually studied under Professor Leuptow for a couple semesters and was able to work with him on the latest edition. The new manual is based primarily on the same concepts, the production of the pizza cutter, but has been updated so that the little frustrating incompatibilites should be eliminated. I learned a good deal from his book and several months later was able to use my SolidWorks skills to help at a summer internship in a Biomechanics laboratory that was primarily using AutoCAD. All in all, a good book for those starting out who want a working knowledge of the program. If you are looking for higher level instruction, you might want to turn to someplace else.



3. The namne of the book says it all, ...Learning SolidWorks. This book is for people who wish to learn SolidWorks, it is not a book on 3D solid modeling, nor is it a book for people experienced with SolidWorks who want advanced assembly training, IT"S FOR BEGINNERS!!!! that's what the title says. right?
   I have over 10 years of AutoCAD experience and I found this book to be an excellent introduction to SolidWorks. I should point out though that I had previously done the tutorial that comes with 2001 Plus. Maybe the combination of my AutoCAD (all 2D, my 3D experience with AutoCAD was 1997 and earlier, I don't even consider those versions of AutoCAD as legitimate 3D solid modeling) experience and doing the SolidWOrks supplied tutorial made this book easier to follow than the other reviewers who found it lacking.
   This book is written for 2001 which is what I used, I found there to be no errors in the instructions, the few times that things weren't working right for me I went back a few steps and tried it again, everything then worked as it was supposed to.
   Having taken 3 classes in SolidWorks from a VAR (Essentials, Sheet Metal, Drawing & Dimensioning) I'd say this book is the low cost way of learning SolidWorks, an excellent introduction to the power of SolidWorks. A wise choice for a person unfamiliar or just starting out with SolidWorks.



4. Well starting out, I was using Solidworks from 2003 and this one was really for 2002. However, the programs are very similar and the Help inside of the program itself can help you to realize when there are program differences present. I must admit that I did learn a lot from this book (most of the basic features and it boosted my confidence level) but I was only able to get past half of it in total because the program kept having errors even when I was following the directions. Also, there were some steps (like in the blade chapter p.44 where Geometry-pattern actually did need to be checked) and sometimes the author wasn't very clear (like which specific origin to choose when).

   The pictures and window illustrations were pretty straight-forward as was the text and I really liked the construction of the pizza cutter because it dealt with curves, revolutions, planes and assembly drawings. It was rewarding to see the object come together while following the manual.

   Overall, if you are interested in a quick refresher guide to the program this would probably be a good choice. If you are a complete beginner then the book will help but be prepared for frustration.




5. Fortunately, I didn't read the negative reviews here before purchasing this book. I'm very excited at the way this book sets about teaching me an amazing new skill... to be able to design physical objects from scratch to the point of producing drawings for a machine shop or injection molder. I just came here to order another copy for my son... I have 4 other Solidworks books also - but I'm a complete beginner and I'm not touching them until I finish this one. It's absolutely focused on teaching Solidworks in a systematic - "bs free" method. For those who complain about the pizza cutter - please - get a life. Also, the book points you to it's website to download a detailed update (18 pages) covering mostly cosmetic differences (dialog boxes) in the latest Solidworks version ... Highly recommended 5 stars.

4 comments about Plan Graphics, 5th Edition.

1. Plans are the most basic and the most important drawings in architecture, landscape architecture, and urban design and planning. They are used in schematic, design development and construction phases of projects. When properly drafted, they can convey the most information to the clients and governing agencies and project team members.
   
   "I have long believed the design process is like a journey along a braided path. The path is marked by crossroads, difficult terrain, and barriers that are hard to negotiate. At times, the journey may seem impossible to complete because workable solutions to overcome obstacles are hard to conceive, and even harder to implement. At other times, the path is an enjoyable stroll through a process of research and discovery, conceptualization of solutions, and the documentation of ideas..." David A. Davis and Theodore D. Walker wrote.
   
   They continued to discuss various aspects of plan graphics, including plan graphics and the creative process (setting up your drawings, text and hand lettering, etc), color graphics, site analysis, conceptual design, construction documents, and finished rendering, sections and elevations. "Plan Graphics" is a compilation of good sample drawings for different design phases provided by nearly 50 professional firms. It is not a step-by-step drawing instruction book.
   
   "Plan Graphics" has 224 pages, including 48 pages of full-color graphics gallery and many black-and-white sample drawings. It is a great collection of sample drawings for architects, landscape architects, and urban planners.



2. The book had excellent graphics, but was all pictures. Didn't learn enough for my purppose, Showed proper presentation procedures. For that, it's great



3. I was expecting a book which showed you how to draw beautiful plans and explain the techniques used to produce these drawings. Instead this book hardly touched upon the techniques. This book is nothing more than a collection of copied architectural drawings bound together for display.



4. I teach Visual Communications at a College of Architecture and find that the 5th edition is a book that is an absolute necessity for anyone planning a future in architecture or landscape architecture. The selection of work represents a great variety of graphic communication techniques for the student and professional to review. The work is slanted to site issues, but can only help to reinforce the integration of site and structure. Not only does it present a variety of techniques, but also a collection of ideas that the student can learn from. It is also a great resource for the practicing professional. I use both this book and Color Drawing by Doyle in my course and find they make an excellent pair.

   William Allen, Professor of Architecture, RLA